Scene with likable James WAS: Re: Eileen Pince

[wynnleaf]

No: HPFGUIDX 156253

wynnleaf
> <HUGE SNIP>
> > I'm curious as to why JKR has given us just one big scene with 
James
> > and that he's sooo awful in the scene.  Sure we see a sort of 
shade of
> > James at the end of GOF, but it's not really even him -- DD says 
it's
> > not even his ghost.  We don't actually get a scene with a 
likable 
> >James.
> 
> Alla:
> 
> We don't? I thought the scene of the man facing the Voldemort in 
hope 
> to defend his wife and son was pretty likeable. But that is just 
me.
> 
> And I thought James had several people to speak well of him. I 
think it 
> means that he had a great deal of likable qualities, not just bad 
ones.
> 
> But that is again JMO.
> 
> Alla
>
wynnleaf
Funny how everyone seemed to misunderstand what I meant here (not 
just you Alla).  I didn't mean to say that we don't know anything 
likable about James, or that no one thought James was likable, or 
that we don't hear about some likable, or at least worthy, things 
that James did.

What I meant was that it's curious that JKR has only given us this 
one scene that actually has James in it -- action, dialogue, etc. -- 
and it's a scene where he comes off as unambiguously a bully, acting 
in this very cowardly manner by hexing someone without provocation, 
then hexing and insulting a person already at his mercy.

Lily, also in this scene, acts in a way that fits what we already 
know of her character -- she seems like the kind of person who might 
be eventually willing to die to save her child.  James, on the other 
hand, really doesn't seem at all like the herioc brave Order member 
that we assume he was when married to Lily.  

What's interesting is that JKR chose to give us such a negative 
scene with James, but has, as yet, given us no positive scenes. -- 
Note: I'm saying "scenes" here with James actually in the scene, not 
scenes where other characters relate facts and opinions about 
James. --  If she wanted to, I'm sure she could have arranged a 
scene in DD's pensieve that would show James in a positive light.  
Or she could have possibly shown the Snape's Worst Memory scene with 
some  positive actions or words from James included in it.  But she 
did not do that.

I'm just curious as to why.  We learn that Hagrid liked James (a big 
plus for me!), although I'm not completely certain what DD thought 
of him.  The most positive thing I recall DD saying were his 
comments to Harry at the end of POA when he said that Harry had 
responded to Pettigrew as James would have and that James wouldn't 
have killed Pettigrew either.

But regardless what various other characters think of James, I'm 
just curious about what JKR wanted us to think of him.  Back before 
OOTP, I just assumed James was this heroic, very admirable guy with 
lots of strength of character.  That was really shot to pieces when 
I read the Snape's Worst Memory scene.  The emotional impact, for 
me, was as though I was reading a "Harry At the Mercy of Draco" kind 
of scenario, with James in the Draco role (not that I thought of 
Snape like Harry).  But the scene was so strong and with such clear 
bullying and cowardly behavior -- I really wondered what JKR wants 
us to feel about James?  She *tells* us admirable things through the 
memories of other characters, but she *showed* us a bully.  

My sense is that she *wanted* us to have some conflicting 
information on James that would be very difficult to reconcile.  
Because Harry is the protagonist, we *want* to like his parents and 
think they were great, especially because I think she wants us to 
feel for Harry and his need for parents he can feel proud of.  

I guess what I'm saying is that I think JKR wanted to reader to feel 
what Harry felt -- so that *we* feel as conflicted about the 
character as Harry does.

Anyway, just my thought...

wynnleaf